Reading Envy 082: Reading Envy Envy

Scott and Jenny go back and read books mentioned by other people in previous episodes of Reading Envy, because of course we get reading envy too! This is not a repeat episode, but a new look at books that may have only been mentioned in passing on previous episodes. Jenny will link to the original episode mentions in case you want to hear another perspective after hearing this episode.

Download or listen via this link: Reading Envy 082: Reading Envy Envy.


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Books discussed:



The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell (originally mentioned episode 075)
The Iguana Tree by Michel Stone (originally mentioned episode 049)
Tenth of December by George Saunders (originally mentioned episode 026)
Invisible Man, Got the Whole World Watching by Mychal Denzel Smith (originally mentioned episode 070)
Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (originally mentioned episode 004)
Plainsong by Kent Haruf (originally mentioned episode 075 and 078)

Other mentions:

Would You Baptize an Extraterrestrial? by Brother Guy Consolmagno
The Star by Arthur C. Clarke
Children of God by Mary Doria Russell
Doc by Mary Doria Russell
Gilead  and Lila by Marilynne Robinson
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
Geek's Guide to the Galaxy Podcast with George Saunders
Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates
Killing Rage by bell hooks
Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah
Purple Hibiscus by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Half of a Yellow Song by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Eventide by Kent Haruf
Benediction by Kent Haruf
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell
Deepness in the Sky by Vernor Vinge
Version Control by Dexter Palmer
The Mothers by Brit Bennett
Eve Out of Her Ruins by Ananda Devi

Related Episodes:
Episode 014 - Flannery O'Connor with Zombies with Jason and Scott
Episode 052 - The Man with the Eyebrows with Philip and Scott
Episode 058 - Wishing for a Sequel with Scott
Episode 071 - Bad Priest, Good Priest, No Priest with Scott
 
Stalk us online:
Jenny at Goodreads
Jenny on Twitter
Jenny is @readingenvy on Instagram and Litsy

Scott on Twitter
Scott on his blog

Reading Goals for End of 2012

I think I might be able to make 200 books by the end of the year, even if they're short ones.  It would be a lovely round large number that I can wrap my envious brain around!

According to GoodReads, I would only need to read 14 more books to make this happen.  That's roughly one a day, and I'm officially on vacation, which would hopefully translate into more reading time!

Here is what I'm thinking, and might go with a different set entirely:

1. The Black Flower by Howard Bahr - I'm reading this already with the "On the Southern Literary Trail" group in GoodReads.
2. The Terrible Privacy of Maxwell Sim by Jonathan Coe - Already reading, and this will count for my Around the World challenge.  I borrowed this from a friend and really need to give it back!
3. Improving Your Storytelling by Doug Lipman - This is due back to the library on December 20, and can't be renewed since it is interlibrary loan.  I'm teaching a storytelling class in May and need to see if this might be useful as a text.
4. Music Research: A Handbook by Laurie Sampsel - Now that the book is in its second edition, I need to get acquainted with it before the spring semester starts.  I'll need to update my syllabus if any changes were made.
5. Birds of a Lesser Paradise: Stories by Megan Mayhew Bergman - I have a review copy of the audiobook, which will be a good one to listen to as I gallivant around in the next week or so.
6. Rock Crystal by Adalbart Stifter - One of the briefer books I have on my shelf intended for the Around the World challenge.  I saved it for Christmas week, some relation to the plot.
7. 100 Great Fantasy Short Short Stories - I snagged a copy of this from Paperbackswap.com for one of the SFF Audio hosts (he lives in Canada and can't use the site) but I think I'm going to read it before sending it. Shhhhh. Most of the stories are 1-2 pages, so it should go very quickly!
8. Ophelia and the Great Idea by Deborah Levy - After reading her Booker-nominated book, I snagged this from paperbackswap.  I thought reading more of her seemed like a good idea, maybe even a great one, har har.
9. Infidel by Kameron Hurley - This is #2 of the Bel Dame Apocrypha series (trilogy may be a better word).  Loved God's War, and her publisher gave away books 1-2 when #3 came out in November.  Now I just need to figure out where I downloaded it.
10. Deception by Philip Roth - I bet this will be a quick read. I got on a kick of acquiring Philip Roth books from paperbackswap.com but I can't remember what prompted me to do it! I guess I should find out and stop the madness.
11. The Portable Virgin by Anne Enright - Another instance of getting more of an author after reading a book nominated for an award. The cover is fun and the stories don't look too intense.
12. Little Tales of Misogyny by Patricia Highsmith - I may not have made it through the second Ripley book (er... yet....) but I've loved the short stories I've read by her so far.  The title of this collection is too compelling to resist!
13. The Dervish by Frances Kazan - I need to read this before it expires in NetGalley, but it sounds like a compelling story of romance and political intrigue during the "dying days of the Ottoman Empire."  I'll count it for my Around the World challenge too!
14. I'm leaving this open.  I have SO MANY BOOKS I could read, and I have a few I've been considering as 'rewards' for the around the world reading, but now that it will extend into another year at least, it is less at an end.

What is your goal by December 31? Share in the comments so I can salivate over what you are reading!

Reading Envy - To-Read Pile Edition

I am picturing the book I am envying other people reading right now.  I don't typically buy books when they are brand new, but since joining a few online book clubs and joining in on podcasts where people are always talking about new releases gives me major reading envy!

I already used my Audible credits downloading Ready Player One and The Night Circus, which I just finished a half hour ago (and was really great!). I'm not sure I'd tackle a Neal Stephenson book in audio format, although I hear Reamde is pretty accessible (in other words: not anything like The Baroque Cycle).

Still. I have books sitting around that are from the new books section at the public library (meaning I only had two weeks to start with), on loan from other libraries through interlibrary loan (and with short checkout periods, no renewals allowed), or books I need to read before I have a discussion.

Here is what is on my "must return to the library soon" pile:

• On Canaan's Side (longlisted for the Man Booker Prize, and although it wasn't shortlisted, I still want to read it)
• The Information: A History, a Theory, a Flood  (I think I read about this in the New York Times, or maybe Wired Magazine)
• Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think (recommended by Happy Herbivore in an entry about vegan weight loss
• The Thing Around Your Neck  (short stories by Adichie, I meant to read this before I did a research session with the African Short Story class and there's still time!)
• African Short Stories (I've made it through West Africa so far)
• Stand on Zanzibar (due back to another library soon, but I only have about 100 pages left)
• Rainbows End (due back to another library, started today, wanted to read it before listening to two podcasts discussing it)

 I won't even get into the to-read piles around my house.  Clearly I have plenty to read and do NOT need to buy Reamde.  What are you envying?